The pets and their handlers attended so the children could read to the animals, boosting the confidence of tentative readers. Dogs do not judge the reader! They just sit quietly and listen to the reader.

Pictured is Naomi Noordyk, with her therapy dog Whisper, a 5 year old English Setter. Naomi, the youngest therapy dog handler in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, said, “I love working with my therapy dogs. The enjoyment that I see people having by spending time with the therapy dogs is a blessing to experience.“. Naomi Noordyk has been an active member in the Delta Society Superiorland Pet Partners for the last 3 years, and handles two certified dogs.

This dog Angel, a gray 2 1/2 year old Pit Bull, sat quietly by her handler Heather as the kids pet Angel. Even though Angel is a Pit Bull, she a enjoys therapy work.

In the community room, a number of tables were set up for children and their families to create crafts. First kids and their parents read a book about a craft, such as paper airplane building, and then worked together to actually craft what they had read about.